This invention pertains to a machine for laminating one material onto another. More particularly, the invention relates to a system for continuously laminating a thin film, such as a transparent thermoplastic layer, onto a succession of glass substrates to produce sheets of shatterproof glass.
Machines and methods for laminating various materials onto substrates such as cellular cores, particle board, plywood and metal panels are not new. Due to the opaque or nontransparent nature of such substrates, however, no special apparatus or procedure is generally required to prevent foreign matter, such as dust and the like, from being trapped between the laminated material and the substrate. On the other hand, when a flexible film is laminated onto a transparent substrate such as glass, it is of critical importance to prevent visible matter from being sandwiched between the film and the substrate. Moreover, unlike more commonly laminated substrates of the type described, the brittle qualities of glass, which make it susceptible to breakage and chipping, are well-known. Accordingly, the problems attendant in laminating a flexible film onto a glass substrate are much more acute than those involved in applying a lamination to most other substrates.
It is therefore a primary object of the invention to overcome these and other problems by providing an improved machine for laminating a flexible film onto a substrate. The improved laminating system permits the continuous application of a flexible film onto a succession of glass sheets to produce high quality shatterproof glass. The system accomplishes this result by sanitarily providing, safely guiding, and alignably transporting glass sheets prior to the application thereon of a flexible laminating film. Accordingly, it is another object of the invention to provide an improved laminating system adapted to continuously apply a flexible film to a succession of glass substrates for producing sheets of shatterproof glass.